


A Colony of Bats

by loup_garou



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), Batman - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-30 04:49:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21422449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loup_garou/pseuds/loup_garou
Summary: If the Arrow doesn't come to the bats, the bats must come to him.
Comments: 11
Kudos: 96





	A Colony of Bats

Oliver feels that he has developed a workable connection with the bats. If he needs anything in Gotham, he passes it on to their commissioner through Lance, and gets absolutely no information back but his targets show up at the police station. Despite the obvious drawbacks, this is a workable solution compared to interacting with the bats, singular or plural, ever again. Which is why he is entirely unprepared for encountering them in Star City.

He is innocently watching a potential drug deal when he hears a polite cough behind him. For a single, wonderful, excruciating moment, he thinks what he sees is Black Canary. Then he realises that while the woman is a curvy blonde, she is wearing purple, not black: Batgirl. Next to her is Red Hood, eyeing him suspiciously. He isn’t worried – he hadn’t been looking at Batgirl that way, and she knows it. Two more vigilantes appear behind Batgirl, and he is beginning to wonder how many there are, and where Batman gets them all. Does he grow them in his cellar, like mushrooms?

The smaller newcomer looks at him with what Oliver can tell, even through the mask, is lordly disdain. The taller – although not as tall as Red Hood – wears a friendly grin that doesn’t fool him for a minute.  
“Hi!” he says cheerily. “I’m Nightwing, this is Robin, Batgirl, and Red Hood.”  
“We’ve met,” Red Hood says, still eyeing him as if he has been looking at his sister. Come to think of it, he probably was.  
Nightwing’s eyebrow goes up above the mask, but he doesn’t comment. “Anyway,” he says, “we need one of the guys down there making a deal. Would you mind if we picked him up and took him with us?”  
Oliver has sat through any number of formal dinners in his life (come to think of it, that is one great benefit of the whole vigilante thing – at least it rarely involves formal dining), and manners he can do. “Please be my guest,“ he replies. “Do I get him back afterwards, or would you rather keep him?” Nightwing grins at him – he has an annoyingly engaging grin – “Oh, you can have him afterwards.” He turns to the others. “Robin and BG, I need you on the other side of the street. On my signal.” With a final supercilious look (Robin) and a flirtatious wink (Batgirl) they grapple across to the roof on the other side. Nightwing and Red Hood look down at the drug dealers, still entirely unaware of the vigilante social above their heads, and prepare to drop. Right before, Nightwing pauses and turns back.  
"Oh, and if Robin happens to ask you about killing Ra's al Ghul, I'd tell him it was honourable battle fought according to the rules, if I were you."  
"What? I'm not going to talk about killing with a ten-year-old!"  
"That's what you think," Red Hood says snidely.  
They both drop off the building onto the unsuspecting criminals below, who are clearly thrown by seeing vigilantes from out of town. Oliver decides not to join them; it’s not often that he gets a chance to watch the bats fighting, after all. He’s surprised that they all show signs of being trained by Batman, yet fight so differently: Nightwing light and acrobatic, Red Hood straightforwardly brutal, and Robin surprisingly lethal for one so small. He doesn’t look at Batgirl: in the streetlight her costume looks black and he can’t bear it. 

The pick-up –literally, they pick their guy up and hang him from a lamp post outside Lance’s precinct – goes well, the bats working together like the well-oiled team Oliver wishes he had. They are sitting comfortably on a roof across the road from the precinct, Red Hood having a smoke despite Nightwing’s look of personal betrayal and Batgirl grumbling at a tear in her cape. Robin stares at him haughtily (the mask hides expressions but he just knows it) and says,  
"I am informed you killed Ra's al Ghul in single combat, Arrow. How did you manage to do that? Your skills do not appear to be sufficient for such a feat."  
Oliver has no idea what to say to that, and he's not actually sure whether he is most insulted or concerned for the mental health of the kid. For lack of any other viable option, he takes Nightwing's advice.  
"It was single combat according to the rules of the League. We fought honourably and I prevailed." And now he's beginning to sound like Robin. He's going to miss Arsenal if this keeps up - at least Arsenal’s effect on his language was not to make him sound like character by Alexandre Dumas. Robin looks him up and down with a sneer.  
"I have seen you fight, Arrow. Your besting Ra's al Ghul without resorting to trickery seems unlikely."  
Oliver has no idea what's going on here but clearly something is troubling the kid. The attitude is hiding real insecurity at this point. And because he's an asshole but even he won't be mean to a kid, he chooses his words with care.  
"Robin, skill only takes you part of the way. Small things change the outcome of battle, and sometimes the better fighter falls to a less skilled opponent. There was no trickery; it was just the day that the Head of the Demon lost."  
Robin snorts with derision but his hand moves away from his weapons and he seems to relax a little. Oliver notices that both Nightwing and Red Hood, in spite of their relaxed poses, could have reached him and Robin fast enough to prevent bloodshed, and wonders, not for the first time, who they all were before meeting Batman. 

“Well, I think we’re done here. I have other things to do,” Red Hood says, stubbing out his cigarette.  
“See you at the cave, Little Wing?” Nightwing suggests hopefully. Red Hood gives him an utterly disgusted look before putting his helmet back on.  
“Are you for real, Goldie? Why the hell would I see you at the cave? I’ve got places to be and people to not kill.”  
Batgirl looks up from her cape.  
“Black Bat said she misses you,” she comments innocently. Red Hood buries his helmeted face in his hands.  
“That is not fair. See if I ever make you waffles again, you dirty low-down scoundrel of a Batgirl.”  
Batgirl grins at him and drops off the roof, hollering “See you at the cave!” Red Hood follows her, grumbling under his breath all the way down. Oliver can hear bikes starting on the street and resist the temptation to see what they’re driving despite the possibility that those are the bike versions of the Batmobile.

Nightwing gets up, stretching, and looking pleased with everything. “Robin, call the car, we’re heading back.” Oliver looks down to see the Batmobile turning the corner into the street below, and come to a purring halt underneath.  
“Is Batman here?” he says. Nightwing suddenly looks shifty. “Nope. No, he couldn’t make it. He sends his regards. I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear this went well.” Oliver looks at him steadily and watches him fidget a little.  
“Batman doesn’t even know you’re here, does he?”  
Nightwing looks like injured innocence personified. “It was a matter of some urgency, we thought it best not to dawdle. Also, if he leaves his car in Crime Alley, things will happen. He should have learned that a long time ago.” Nightwing’s phone rings, and he glances at the caller ID without picking up. “Well, look at that, got to go.” He gestures to Robin, and they rappel down the building and disappear into the car. 

Oliver spends a few wonderful moments imagining the Bat returning to his car only to discover that it has disappeared, and the look on his face. Serves him right for being a self-righteous kind of asshole. He wonders a little what cave they were all returning to, and if his idea of Batman growing his crew in the cellar like mushrooms was a bit closer to the truth than he’s really comfortable contemplating. At least he did not end up thrown into any walls; he’s beginning to think his relationship with the bats might be improving.


End file.
